FOX, HICKEY SET TO FACE OFF AT BEANPOT

The two Calgary Flames prospects will square off in Monday's Beanpot final in Boston

Calgary Flames prospects Adam Fox and Brandon Hickey will square off in the Beanpot final in Boston on Monday.

Fox and Harvard topped Northeastern 4-3 in the first Beanpot semi-final while Hickey and Boston University picked up a 3-1 win over the 2016 Beanpot-winning Boston College in the second semi-final at TD Garden this past Monday.

The annual affair features the four Boston-area post-secondary schools clashing in men's and women's hockey for the Beanpot championship every February. The tournament began in 1952 and has grown into one of the city's most popular sporting events.

"The history, playing in that city, it's a great hockey city," Johnny Gaudreau said, recalling the three championships he captured during his three-year tenure with Boston College. "Those four schools are so close together. To get to play in a tournament like that, there's so much history behind it. We always get really excited for the first Monday of the month there. It's always a fun time.

"After you're done playing in it, you still look back and watch the tournament."

In Monday's first semi-final match-up, Fox recorded three shots in Harvard's victory. The freshman defenceman leads all Harvard blueliners with 25 points in 22 games and sits third overall in team scoring. He is tied with Gavin Bayreuther, a St. Lawerence senior, for the lead in scoring amongst all ECAC defencemen.

"He's so smart. He makes plays. He's great on the power play. He has great vision," Calgary Flames assistant general manager Craig Conroy said earlier this year.

"He's just an offensively-gifted guy that makes plays, makes things happen every time he's on the ice. His vision and his hockey sense are so strong. And he's always had skill too. I worried about the size and the speed of the game but obviously that hasn't affected him at all."

Fox was the Flames' third round selection in the 2016 NHL Draft, going 66th overall.

Hickey and Boston University upended rival Boston College in the second semi-final tilt, scoring even-strength, power play and short-handed goals in their 3-1 victory. With 13 points through 28 games, Hickey is second amongst all BU defencemen in scoring and leads his team with 53 blocked shots.

At last summer's development camp, Flames general manager Brad Treliving raved about the 2014 third rounder's progression through his first two seasons at BU and his commitment to adding more muscle onto his 6-foot-2 frame.

"He's looking like a man. He is a good example of a player who was drafted a couple years ago that continues to show steady improvement each time we see him.

"The sky is the limit for him ... He is one of those young players that just gets it."